FRIDAY FOTO (Feb. 17, 2012)

Capt. Jason Blodzinski, a 77th Fighter Squadron pilot, talks with his crew chief, Senior Airman Frank Brown, as they ready an F-16 Fighting Falcon for launch. This photo illustrates just how small this highly-regarded jet fighter is. Note the photo below shows what the F-16 looks like in flight. This photo also shows the F-16’s sensor and targeting technology under the fuselage, the cigar-shaped external fuel tanks and missiles and hard-point under-wing connections for additional missiles. For a detailed look at the development of the F-16, click here.

The 77th Squadron was taking part in an operational readiness exercise at Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina on Jan. 31, 2012. The exercise evaluated the 20th Fighter Wing’s ability to meet wartime and contingency tasks.

The 4th Fighter Squadron Fighting Falcons shown below were taking part in Red Flag 12-2 exercise over the Nevada desert.